Improvement in marine furniture



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JoSIAHroST'nR, or SANDWICH, MASSACHUSETTS Letters Patent No. 64,962,dated May 21, 1867.

IMPROVEMENT IN MARINE EURNITURE.

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T0 ALL WHOM IT MAY CONCERN:

Be it known that I, JosIAH FOSTER, of Sandwich, in the county ofBarnstable, and State of Massachusetts, have invented an Improvement inMarine Furniture and I do hereby declare that the following, taken inconnection'with the drawings which accompany and form part of thisspecification, is a description ofmy invention suicicnt to enable thoseskilled in theart to practise ita In .cases ofv marine disasterby'w-reck, foundering, 0r fire, it is often the case that the boatsprovided, for such emergencies are insuicient in capacity for receptionof the persons exposed to danger from such misfor-' tunes, especially inthe case ofpassenger vessels. In such emergencies'rafts andlife-preservers, for the purpose of temporary support, are eagerlysought, and not unfrequently prove the means of preserving valuablelives, Itis to increase the capacity and amount of meansf'or temporarilyfloating'pas-sengers'and crew in cases of .disaster that is the objectof my invention, said object being effected by the utilization ofsettees or sofas, whch may be used as seats for the convenience ofpassengers in and about the various parts of vessels.

My invention consists in such a construction and adaptation of longseats, lkesofas, lounges, settees, 85e., that the union of two o f themshall form a boat or vessel, comparatively water-tight, and ofconsiderable capacity, in which the seat-parts of the sofas form thebottom of the boat, and the backs and ends of the sofas formrespectively the sides and ends ofthe boat.

In the practice of my invention, I propose to have the feet, legs, orother supportsoi"- the long seats employed, made easily removable, sothat the bottom of the boat made therefrom shall he comparativelysmooth, so as to reduce resistance `to propulsion of the boatthrotughthe water, and to have the front edges of the ends and seat of one sofaof a pair made with a groove, the bottom of which is faced or packedwith rubber, while the front edges of the seat and ends of the othersofa of the pair are made'to enter said groove and to bear firmly on therubber, the two sofas being keyed or otherwise secured together.

Figure 1 of' the drawings shows in prspectivethe upper parts of twosettees or sofas, united according to myi nvention, so as to form aboat.

Figure 2, showing also in perspecti'e that one ot`v the izo-operativepair of sofas, which has the-rubberbottomed groove, this view alsoshowing tlhc feet or legs of the'sofa as in place thereupon, -butrepresenting the upholstery 'of the.sot`a as removed.

The bodies of sofas'designed fr contingent use, as described, shouldbecomparatively stout, and should be put together' with care andreference to such use. i

In the drawings, a represents' the seat-portions of the sofas; thebacks; e, the ends, and d, thelegsor feet. 0n either sid of the frontedge. ofi one sofa of a co-operativ'e pair vare strongly secured cleats,e, which', projecting beyond the aforesaid edge, form a groove, which isbottomed with rulbbenf, and which receives the front edge of the othersofa of a pair, as seen in fig. 1. On the inner side of the bottom andends of that sofa, the edge of which projects nto'the described groove,are cleats, g, so placed that when vthe two sofas are united the edgesof Athe cleats e andy shall noty touch. These cleats serve convenientlyas means through which the two sofas are secured to each other by boltsseen ath, which may be slid through holes bored'in the cleats, andhaving slots through the ends-thereof. Wedge-keys t' driven thereinserve to draw the edges of the sofas together and compress the rubberbetween them, making a water-tight joint. Under each sofa, or at thebacks thereof, may be secured oars, suitable for use, and 4one or morethwarts or seats, so fitted as to aid in holding the sofas together,W'hile at th'e same time acting to keep the sides of the boat from beingpressed or sprung inward. The

upper edges of the sofa are tted for thc reception 0i' suitablerow-locks, which may have, like the oars, seats and other necessaryparts, 'a place of secure deposit about the sofas, so arranged as to'beby location, or by the arrangement of the upholstery, concealed fromview till the furniture is stripped and moved .for use as a boat. One ortwo men can easily and very quickly strip a co-operating pair of 'sofasot' their upholstery, and unite them together intoa beat which will haveconsiderable capacity and but little weight, and which might serve topreserve human life in lack of regular boats. The detail of proportion,.and of the means for securing the two'l pieces of furniture togethcr,are not of the essence of my invention, and may he varied vto suitdii'cring circumstances. To increase the chances oi' safety in the useof boats made up in sections from furniture, I propose to make use ofain-chambers, which may bc locaterl ai mostconrejiicnt, though I preferto` secu-rethem to the inside of the boat, u'po'n its bottom, 4as lessliable there to perforations than elsewhere, and leaving the bottom ofkthe boat to act more efficiently as a mere raft in case of thestaving inof the.ends or sides.

A claim a construction of movable furniture f'or vessels, such thatbymeans of'vpackedjoints, arranged and operating as set4 forth, itcan be'transformed into boats, substantially as described.

.JOSIAH FOSTER.

Witnesses:

'CHAs H.' LAPu-A n,

C, II. FOSTER.

